Butterflies
by PoeticLover1996
Summary: She made him feel some type of way, and he wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing.


"Butterflies"

Written by PoeticLover1996

Disclaimer: As much as I wish I did, sadly, I don't own these amazing characters.

* * *

They walked together in comfortable silence. He sported his usual look of indifference, crimson eyes filled with boredom. He briefly glanced at her, wondering why he was even hanging with her, though, in all honesty, she really didn't bother him. She respected his space and didn't try to strike a conversation with him. Her hair was neatly braided, and a yellow flower was tucked safely in her auburn hair. Her dress, the color of freshly cut grass, was strapless and rested two inches above her knees; she wore silver flats that shone whenever the light hit them. In her hands, she held the handle of a purple and pink basket, and nestled inside it were several brightly colored eggs.

They had found nine eggs in all, and they proved to make an excellent team. Since today was Easter, the gang decided to have a traditional Easter egg hunt. Naturally, Shadow's first instinct was to refuse, as he felt that such an activity was beneath him, but, much to his dismay, his friends, he supposed they were his friends, predicated this and decided to do a drawing to determine who would work with who on the egg hunt. Lo and behold, Shadow's name was picked by none other than Sally herself. The chipmunk princess looked just as surprised as he did, but she smiled it off and seemed glad that they would be working together. Shadow wished he could say the same.

It wasn't that he disliked Sally. From what he'd heard and seen, she was actually a decent person and easy to be around; he just would've felt more comfortable working with someone he knew better, like Rouge. But he knew his friend wanted to be paired up with Knuckles, which was why it wasn't surprising when she pulled Knuckles' name out of the jar, much to Knuckles dismay and Rouge's pleasure.

"Do you want something, Shadow?" Her voice, pleasant to the ears, coaxed him out of his contemplations. She was staring at him with those pretty sapphire eyes of hers, and she smiled warmly at him.

"And what makes you think I want something, princess?" While his tone had the tendency to cut and offend people, it had no such effect on her as he watched her smile and laugh softly. He arched an eyebrow, puzzled. Funny, he didn't recollect saying anything humorous.

"Oh, I don't know. You've been staring at me for the past five minutes, so either you must really like what you see or you're some kind of creeper. I'm really hoping it's the former though," she said, throwing him a wink before looking away. Shadow was glad she did, for he felt himself blushing just the slightest, which was strange within itself.

Liked what he saw? He glanced at her again, noticing how pretty and tranquil she looked. Her eyes, if he were being honest with himself, were a beautiful shade of blue and resembled sapphires. Shadow scoffed quietly, crossing his arms over his chest as he put his mask back up again. If he kept having thoughts like those, he'd end up being as soft as that blue faker was when it came to Amy. He shuddered at such a possibility. No, he would like this girl get under his skin.

* * *

"This is ridiculous, princess," Shadow muttered, his face heating up in embarrassment. He was on the ground crawling on his hands and knees under a park bench, crimson eyes searching for a brightly colored egg.

"No, it's not, Shadow. It's fun," Sally insisted, stooping down as she looked through the bright green leaves of a bush, hoping to find an egg. To her slight disappoint, there was nothing there. Huffing quietly, she stood up and walked over to where Shadow was. Maybe he had some luck with finding an egg.

"I apologize for not seeing the fun or point in looking for brightly colored eggs left by the "Easter Bunny". What does a rabbit have to do with eggs anyways?" Shadow asked, slowly standing up and giving Sally a look as he gently placed the blue egg sprinkled with yellow polka dots into her open palm. Sally grinned and put the egg inside their Easter egg basket. Taking hold of his hand, she led him to another area of the park, intent on finding at least one more egg before heading back to Cream's house, where everyone would have an nice Easter dinner. Shadow disregarded the way his heartbeat seemed to temporarily stop when their hands touched.

Sally shrugged her shoulders, smiling all the while, and Shadow wondered what it was that had her all smiles and cheers. Maybe she was just like that; he hadn't been in her company long enough to truly know what kind of person she was.

"I don't understand the whole rabbit hiding eggs thing either. Honestly, I don't know who came up with the bright idea of having a rabbit hiding painted boiled eggs because that's weird, but it's tradition, and Easter egg hunts are a part of the Easter holiday," she explained, eyes scanning the area for any eggs. Shadow furrowed his eyebrows in confusion; this holiday possessed some bizarre traditions, though Christmas beat it by a longshot. Who celebrated a holiday where a jolly prowler broke into your home, gorged himself on some milk and cookies, and left you gifts? He shook his head; he had so much to learn.

"I agree with you, but it isn't such a bad holiday. Maria used to love it to bits, and we'd have our own little Easter egg hunt and watch Easter specials on TV." That bit of information left his mouth before he had time to stop it. He hadn't the foggiest idea why he even told her something like that and was shocked by his behavior. Sally seemed surprised as well because she stopped walking, staring at him curiously.

"Wow, Shadow. I had no idea. I'm flattered that you would even share something as personal as your past with me. I told Sonic you and I would work together just fine." And, just like that, she was all smiles once more. She began walking once more, and Shadow had no choice but to follow her.

"What do you mean? What has that faker gone and said now?" Sally looked hesitant and refused to meet his gaze. This time, Shadow was the one who stopped walking and stood directly in front of her. His fingers grazed her chin as he tilted her head up so that they're eyes met. Sally felt her breath catch in her throat, unsure of what to do. Her eyes roved over his face, admiring how handsome he looked. They were so close, and she could feel his warm, sweet breath washing over her face. Gulping, she searched for her voice and began to speak.

"Well, when I had picked your name from the jar, Sonic came up to me and asked whose name I picked. When I told him I picked yours, he frowned and asked me if I wanted to be his partner, saying that Tails wouldn't mind and he didn't want me stuck with you because I'd have a bad time because you're so distant and closed off from everyone and he didn't want you being rude to me or hurt my feelings. I insisted that I was fine with working with you," she said.

Shadow smiled, shaking his head.

"I appreciate the faker's concern, but it really isn't necessary. Unlike him, I actually know how to treat a lady. Unlike him, I don't try to run away from problems and face them head on," said Shadow, leaning just a bit closer. Sally's eyes went wide, and her gaze flickered from his face to his lips and back to his face. Shadow, too, noticed at how close their lips were, and he felt weird, like his was on fire and that his heart was going to burst from his chest, it was beating so fast.

He watched as her eyes drooped shut, how she moved closer to him. Shadow found himself doing the same, leaning forward until his lips were softly pressed against hers. And as he felt her lips mold themselves against his, how their hands found each other and interlocked together, he knew that Easter was definitely a holiday he could find himself looking forward to.


End file.
